Combination-lock.



H. H. CHRISMAN.

COMBINATION LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED AIIG.4. 1915.

l ,235,5 1 5 Patented July 31, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 5o ,36 49 46 ze' 47 z5 H. H. CHRISIVIAN.

COMBINATION LOCK,

APPLIcAmN FILED AuG.4,1915.

1,2855 1 5. Patented July 31, 1917 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

4? alfa' HERBERT CHRISIVIAN, OF MINNEA'GLS, IILL'NESD fjs.

COiBINATIGN-LOCK.

Specification of Letters atent.

Application filed August 4, 1915. Serial No. 43,600.

To all whom 'it may cof/cera Be it known that I, Hnnnn'r H. Curas- MAN, citizen of the United States, resident of Minneapolis, county of Hennepin, State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combination- Looks, of which the following is a specification. A

The object of my invention is to provide a logdevice in connection with the battery or magneto circuit of an automobile to prei vent any unauthorized person from starting the car and to dispense entirely with locks and keys. Ai'urther object is to provide a devic having keys for controlling the diii'erent lights o't the car.

Other objects ot the invention will appear from t-he following detailed description.

The invention consists generally' in various constructions and combinations, all as hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the Claims.

n the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification,

Figure 1 is a plan view of the lock device with the cover raised,

Fig. 2 is a rei-tical sectional view on the line of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a. sectional view on the line y-y of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing, 2 represents a suitable.

box or casing, in which the lock is mounted. Vithin this box l arrange a series of plates ot conducting material', preferably copper, designated by reference numerals 2, Jr, 5,

(3, 7, S and 9, alternating with a correspond- 40 ing number of insulating plates 10, which Separate the conductor plates from Contact with one another. The conductor plates and the insulating plates have tapered sockets 11 therein and pins 12, 1?) and 14, ot suitable conducting material, such as copper, are mounted to slide in said sockets and have collars 15 and 1G formed thereon in such a position that they will bear on the walls of the sockets in the conductor plates and make a rubbing contact therewith. These conductor plates form terminals tor theline circuits and the plates Q", 7 and 9 have binding posts 17, 1S, 19 and 20 at one'end, and the plates (5, S, 9 and 9 have similar posts 21, Q2, 23 and 24 at the opposite ends ot the plates. rlhe collars 15 and 1G on the pms 12, 13 and 14 arespaced apart and are preferably tapered to conform to the taper ot the pins, and when the pins are toi-eed into the sockets, the. collars will close the circuit through the pins between the conducting plates. Said pins preterably have heads and springs 2G are mounted to engage said heads and hold them either in their depressed or raised position.

In Fig. the circuit is shown as closed between the terminal 1T, the plates 2 and 3, thence through the collars on the pin 13 and plates 3 and t and the collars on the pin 1t to the terminal 1d, and trom thence through the conductor 2 to the engine {notshown) and back through the battery B and conductors QS to the terminal 1T of the plate 2, thus completing the battery or magneto circuit and producing a spark to start the engine. 30 isa cover, hinged at 31 to the casing and in this cover a series ot keys 32 are mounted and normally held in a raised or projected position by springs These keys are all. alike and in this lock i have shown a group or bank of 1t? o theiii-b'ut this number may be increased or diminisl ed. as desired. i

rlhe keys are in alinement with the pins.

and when the proper keys are depressed, the pins controlling the electric circuit will b operated to close the circuit through th battery and the magneto. Beneath some oi the keys I provide a group of dnmn'n,Y pins, one of which I illustrate in if and designate by reference numeral Sli This pin has collars 35 and 3C thereon to make contact with the plates Qand T which are in circuit with the battery hrough rthe terminals 17 and 19and with an electro-magnet 3T. The armature 23S ot' this magnet is piyoted at 59 and connected on the opposite side ot' its pivot with a rod if() which extends down through the insulating` and conducting plates, and is connected to a plate 41 which is vieldingly held in a depressed position by a spring 42. l.Yhen the circuit is closed through the magnet BT, this plate l1 will be quickly raised and should the person seeking to work the combination have depressed any one of the right pins. 12, 13 or 14, and should close the circuit through the magnet by the depression ot one ot the other pins` the quick urnvard movement ot the plate 41 will immediately litt the proper Clt . right keys in succession, but in case'he should rangement.

pick out two 'of them correctly and then strike the wrong key and depress one of the pins 34,` the plate 41 would immediately be thrown upward and the pins that he may hove correctly operated will be thrown back to their normal position. 1t will thus be extremely difficult for any one not understanding the combination to pickout the proper keys. Furthermore, whenever desired, the arrangement of the keys in the p lock may be changed, assuming that some one has detached the combination or learned the order of the keys and their relative ar- By shifting them about confusion will be sureto result and unless a person is familiar with thelocation of the i proper pinsit willbe practically impossible for him to work thecombination.

For the purpose of locking the cover 30 but permitting access to the pins to shift them about in the plates, I prefer to provide an electro-magnet 43 in circuit with the terminals 17 and 21. The armature 44 of the magnet 43 has a dog 45 which engages a flange 46 of the cover and normally locks it in place. Vhen the key 46 controlling th cover locking pin is depressed (see Fig. 3), the Circuit will be closed through this pin and the plates 2", 3, 4 and 6, providing the pins 12, 13 and`14 are in place, and through the magnet 43 energizing the armature to release the cover and allow it to be raised to permit access to the pins. I will trace the circuit between the terminal 17 and the magnet 43 as follows: through-conductor 28 and battery B to terminal 17; through plate 2 and pin 12 to plate 3, pin 13 to plate 4 and from plate 4, assuming that the pin 46 has been depressed to plate 6, thence to terminal 21 and back to the magnet 43.

I also prefer to provide a group of pins 47 48, 49 and 50 controlling respectively the tailv and head lights, the body light and the door, each pin being actuated by a key corresponding to those described with reference to Fig. 2 and mounted in the covcriin position, when depressed, to actuate the pin beneath and close the respective circuits therefor. As here shown, conductors 51, 52 land 52 are connected to the plates 9, 9 and 9, and the body light is on through a. depression of the pin 49 and the closing of the circuit through the plates 2 and 9". The pins have the other circuits here illustrated in their raised position where, however, they .from one another, said plates having a series of sockets extending therethrough andy through the insulation between them, a se` ries of selective circuit closing pins fitting within said sockets, and an electric circuit closed by the movement of a predetermined Y combination of said pins.

2. A combination lock comprising a series of insulated conductor plates having sockets therein, circuit closing pins fitting within said sockets an electric circuit lclosed by the movement of a group of said pins, and means for returning all the pins to their normal position in case the operator should move a pin not in said group.

3. A combination lock comprising a plurality of insulated plates having sockets therein, circuit closing pins fitting within said sockets, an electric circuit for certain ofsaid 9lates, a second electric circuit for others said plates, a series of corresponding actuating keys, some of said keys operating said circuit closing pins to close said first named circuit, mechanism actuated by other keys for closing said second named circuit, and means operative by the` closing of said second named circuit for returning said circuit closing keys to their normal position. I

4. A combination lock comprising a series of insulated plates having sockets therein and pins ,for said sockets, some of said pins having means for closing the circuit through certain of said plates and other pins having means for closing the circuit through other plates, terminals and conductors for said plates, actuating keysfor said pins, an electric circuit closed by the movement of some will be `forced down by the depression of the of said pins and having means for returningsaid circuit closing pins to their normal position. Y i

I 5. A combination lock comprisinga series of circuit-closing pins, an electric circuit closed by the movement of a certain combination of said pins and electrically actuated means made operable by the movement of a pin not in the combination for rendering the movement of the pins in the Combination ineffective.

6. A combination lock comprising a series of insulated conductor plates having sockets therein, circuit closingr pins fitting within said sockets and an electric circuit closed by the movement ot' a predetermined combination of said pins and a group of keys for actuating said pins.

7. A combination lockconipi'ising a series of insulatedl plates having sockets therein and pins for said sockets, the combination of certain of said pins closing the circuit hrough some of said plates and other pins closing the circuit through other plates, an electric circuit closed bythe movement ol some of said pins and having an electromagnetrand armature therein, and a striker pla-te connected with said armature and actuated thereby to return said combination pins to their normal positions in case of :failure to operate them successively or by operating more pins than are in the combination.

8. A combination lock comprising a suitable casing and a cover therefor and a locking device for said cover, an electro-magnet for controlling said locking device, terminals in circuit with said electro-magnet and having contact plates, a pin for closing the circuit through said plates and magnet, and other circuit closing pins arranged in combination for completing the circuit between said first namedpin and magnet.

9. A combination lock comprising a series of'circuit pins, an electric circuit closed by the movement of a certain combination of said pins, and electrically actuated means for automatically returning all of said pins to their normal position when a pin not in the combination 1s operated.

10. A combination lock comprising a se' ries of insulated plates having sockets therein, an electric -circuit having terminals on some of said plates, pins fitting said sockets for closing the circuit between said plates, some of the pins closingthe circuit through certain of said plates and other pins closing the circuit through other of said plates.

ll. A combination lock comprising a series of conducting` members arranged in substantially parallel relation and insulated from each other, an electric circuit having terminals on said members, said members having sockets therein, vthose of one member being arranged to register with the corresponding sockets of the other members, circuit closers fitting said sockets for contacting with said members to close the circuit between them, some of said circuit closers closing the circuit through certain of said members and other circuit closers closing the circuit through other of said members.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 28th day of July 1915.

HERBERT H. CHRISMAN. 

